Having Northfield located in two counties has it’s advantages. In this case, I’m able to interact with both organizations that represent police administrators in both Rice and Dakota Counties. I am concluding my year as president of the Dakota County Chiefs’ Association. The Dakota County group meets on a monthly basis to exchange information and invite different speakers of interest to present various topics related to our discipline.
The December meeting is reserved to invite all the retired chiefs from the Dakota County law enforcement agencies to attend. It’s a great opportunity to catch up with what these individuals have been doing since retirement. Some of the individuals have recently retired and others have been retired twenty years or more.
I find it enjoyable to listen to the stories the retired chiefs have to tell. The rapid growth in Dakota County found many of these administrators grow two or three person departments to departments with 60 or more officers.
The way we police has changed dramatically as well. As I’ve mentioned before, technology has forever changed the way we practice our vocation on a daily basis. Technology makes us more efficient and effective and allows us to meet the growing demand our growing communities require.
The large number of the administrators who have retired over the past two years is also a reminder of the dramatic change policing is experiencing in Minnesota. A substantial number of administrators and senior mangers will be retiring in the next thee to four years. Such a change in administrators and senior officers will alter the face of policing for years to come. As new ideas and new ways of doing things dawns, I think it is fitting to take time to thank those officers to literally pioneered law enforcement out of the dark times of the 1960’s and cut the path toward the progressive policing practices of the 21st Century. Minnesota is fortunate to have dedicated and very qualified law enforcement professionals. This fact is the overriding reason why Minnesota consistently ranks among the top states in the U.S. in quality law enforcement services.
Thanks to the men and women who have dedicated their lives to make a difference!